The field of the disclosure relates generally to wing assemblies, and, more particularly, to rotary drive assemblies for rotating a wing tip relative to a wing body.
The number of available airports that an aircraft is able to operate out of is typically limited, at least in part, by the size of the aircraft. Specifically, hanger and runway dimensions may prevent relatively large aircraft from operating out of smaller airports. For example, airports may be classified into different groups based on the permitted wingspans.
Accordingly, at least some known wing assemblies enable an aircraft to decrease its wingspan once the aircraft has landed, allowing to aircraft to operate out of smaller airports. For example, at least some known wing assemblies facilitate rotating a wing tip relatively to the remainder of the wing to shorten the overall length of the wing. However, known assemblies may include a direct drive system that places relatively large strains on the rotation mechanism. Further, known assemblies may require relatively large and/or complex components that may be too large to fit within the wing.